


I'm not a kid!

by casual irondad (Padfootastic)



Series: peter's one badass mf [2]
Category: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies)
Genre: Annoyed Peter Parker, BAMF Peter Parker, Gen, HE'S ENHANCED why do people not get that, Hurt/Comfort, NOT THAT THERE'LL BE ANY DESTRUCTION NOPE, Protective Tony Stark, Tony Stark Acting as Peter Parker's Parental Figure, also aunt may isnt the best here sorry, basically everyone but tony is an idiot, god i love this idiot, i love her but it had to be done, no angst in here move along folks, peter's not a child and shouldn't be treated like one, she has the power to destroy peter
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-01-24
Updated: 2020-01-24
Packaged: 2021-02-27 11:14:42
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,987
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/22376299
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Padfootastic/pseuds/casual%20irondad
Summary: Where Peter is sick of being treated like an infant by everyone, and goes to Tony, who tells him to set things straight. Which he does, in his usual Spider flair.
Relationships: Peter Parker & Tony Stark
Series: peter's one badass mf [2]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1613317
Comments: 24
Kudos: 408





	I'm not a kid!

**Author's Note:**

> man. can't believe i'm doing this. guess i rly am venturing into this territory huh?
> 
> this is basically my frustration at a lot of people, including fic authors, treating peter like he's this wittle kid and not an enhanced human with mutated DNA. the kid can probably beat everyone on the team except the hulk and thor, and he's still treated like he's a snot nosed brat? nuh uh. not in my christian household. 
> 
> so, here we are. not a lot of irondad in this (even tho i tried rly hard to get tony in here somehow, so if he feels forced, know that it's because i'd die before writing anything bad ab my fav dude) 
> 
> like, share, comment, subscribe, all that good stuff~  
> have fun <3

Peter was having an off day. It didn’t really come as a surprise to him. He’d been expecting one for weeks now. But that didn’t make it any less frustrating. 

The biggest reason for his current annoyance was how everyone around him had been treating him like a kid. Like a stupid, idiotic, reckless kid. And sure, he gets where they’re coming from, he really does. He’s 16 years old, he can't even buy a cigarette and he’s out on the streets pretending to be a hero?

Pft, he’d do the same if he was in their shoes. 

Except, he wasn’t any regular kid. He was enhanced. His body didn’t work like an average human’s, and definitely not like an average teen his age But goddammit, no one around him seemed to get it. They thought he was just being a moody teenager when he said he wasn’t like the others and he could take care of himself, thank you very much.

They actually had the audacity to ruffle his hair condescendingly while telling him, oh so sweetly, that he was too young, too inexperienced, too naive Fuck that. 

He’d been doing this far longer than they realized. He was out on the streets, doing his thing, before Mr. Stark had ever noticed him and decided to build him a suit. He knew how to take care of himself. Just because Peter Parker was a hot bumbling mess, doesn't mean Spider-Man is. He can’t afford to be. If Peter Parker slips up somewhere, the worst consequence he’d face is grounding or expulsion. If Spider-Man failed? People would die. And he couldn’t live with that, couldn’t allow that. 

So he took his nightly activities probably more seriously than anyone else. He had good reason to. But, they just didn’t seem to get it. 

The Avengers, Aunt May, Happy Hogan, Colonel Rhodes- Everyone he met had the same opinion, as if they’d sat down together and come up with a script of answers to give him when he came up to them. 

“Sorry, Peter, today’s mission is too dangerous for you.’ 

‘Oh Pete, why are you awake at this time? Don’t you know you need a good night's sleep? Go and get some rest.’

‘Peter. How many times do I have to tell you not to engage with criminals? Leave the muggers and kidnappers to the police You could get hurt!’ 

‘Maybe you can use one of the simulations for practice, Peter? I’m afraid Nat or Steve would be too much for you.’ 

It was a never-ending litany of rejection and condescension and Peter was sick of it. It was bad enough when they only undermined Spider-Man (which was a whole thing in itself. They seemed to think Spider-Man was a hobby? A pastime?) but they also carried it through to his non-superhero self. He was sick of being treated like he couldn’t make decisions for himself, and he didn’t know how much longer he could stop himself. If things kept going like this, he’d snap. And it wouldn't be pretty.

* * *

There was one positive hiding in this shitshow, Peter decided a couple of days later. It was Tony Stark. 

While he wasn’t happy at interacting with everyone else, spending time with Tony, especially in the lab, was just what he needed to keep himself sane. Usually, he’d just swing by the tower a couple of days a week, tinker in the lab (he actually had a legitimate internship now yay!) and if it was the weekend, spend the night before going back home. But, his mental state the past few days made him come over to the Tower every single day this week, and he knew Tony knew something was wrong. He hadn’t pushed him yet, but Peter knew it wouldn’t last long. The man was big on talking these days (hypocritical as that was) and if he thought something was affecting Peter, he’d make him talk. Sure, he’d give him a few days before going in for the kill, but he’d do it. 

And surprisingly, Peter found that he didn’t mind it too much. The older man knew when to stop pushing, and definitely did not treat Peter like a kid. 

So yeah, he knew this time was running out. He just wasn’t prepared for it to be today. 

“So,” Tony started nonchalantly, facing away from Peter, and a casual look on his face, “How’s life for spiderbabies these days?” 

Peter scowled, wanting to say that he was the only spiderbaby, but also wanting to argue that he wasn’t a baby. 

“Everything good?” Tony continued, his lips turned slightly upwards now, knowing the effect his words had on Peter and loving it. 

Said spiderbaby sighed, knowing he could only prolong this, not avoid it. And with how on edge he was these days, he really wasn’t in the mood for any kind of mental gymnastics. Plus, he kind of wanted to talk to someone about this, because it didn’t seem like people would stop anytime soon, which meant it was up to him to do something and he wasn’t sure what he could do. 

“No, not really.” 

“You...wanna elaborate on that?” 

“Eh, again, not really. But you won’t take that for an answer, and I realize I need to talk about this anyway,” Peter sighed.

Tony gasped, (a little too exaggerated in Peter’s opinion), “What is this? Peter Parker willingly talking to me, ‘ol Tony Stark, without any threats or blackmail? What has this world come to?” 

“Oh shut up, you big joker,” Peter swatted at him, but he couldn’t deny the warmth that filled him when Tony acted like this. (It was his favorite side of the man; when he completely let his inhibitions down and joked around with Peter, it was such a contrast to how they’d been around each other in the beginning, cold and formal. Peter never wanted to go back to that.) 

“Well then,” Tony gave him a knowing look as if he knew Peter wasn’t bothered, “What’s up?” 

Peter pulled his fingers for a second, trying to figure out how to say what was on his mind without sounding like a kid, which would just be hilarious, wouldn’t it?

“I-I’m not quite sure how to put this across, so bear with me for a second,” he started unsurely. Tony nodded firmly at him, Peter knew he’d never say anything to him. He was cool like that. 

“I just, the past few weeks have been pretty mentally taxing for me. Schoolwork and all is one thing, I’m used to that, so it’s not really that annoying. It’s everything else. Ever since everyone found out about me being Spider-Man, I haven’t been able to catch a break. It’s just...too much.” 

He took a deep breath, for the first time realising how tense his shoulders have been, and how much this was really affecting him. 

“Too much?” Tony asked softly, “Is everyone being too overbearing on you?” 

“Yes!” Peter almost cried out in relief, thankful that Tony got it. That he didn’t have to sit there and stumble until he found the words. “No one seems to want to leave me alone these days. And I’m not saying I want to be left alone all the time, but fucking hell, I’m not getting any space. Every time I try and be alone, I get suspicious looks, as if I’m gonna go and pick fights with the first supervillain I see. If I’m late even a little bit, I have to deal with snide comments. A bad day at school, anything to do with my grades, and of course it has to be Spider-Man, doesn’t it? I obviously can’t do anything right.” 

“Oh sweetheart,” Tony sighed (he really was quite open with his nicknames for Peter these days; not that he was opposed to it) and tugged Peter towards him with one arm, “I didn’t quite realize how much people were bugging you.” 

Peter, for his part, practically melted into his mentor’s embrace. Probably for the first time in weeks, he let himself relax.

“It’s because of your age, huh?” Tony continued, “I’ll bet my Tower that most of them are acting the way they do because they don’t know how to react to someone as young as you going out and doing what they do. Of course, it’s also probably mixed in with an element of protectiveness and just a general superiority complex of them feeling like they know what’s best.” 

“I get that, Mr. Stark, I really do,” Peter mumbled into his chest, fingers clenching onto the oil-stained band shirt he was wearing, “And that’s why I haven’t said anything to anyone. With May, it’s understandable. It doesn’t make it any less frustrating, but it’s understandable. What’s everyone else’s excuse? They don’t know me, they don’t even bother to get to know me, and suddenly they think they can dictate my life however they want? I’m barely holding onto my patience with May too. I understand her concern, I really do, but she’s not even trying to understand why I do what I do.” 

“And the worst part, the absolute worst part, is that they think of me like a regular kid,” Peter said with a scowl on his face. He could see Tony open his mouth, presumably to say that he was, indeed, a kid, but he wasn’t quite done yet. Now that the ball was rolling, he needed to get everything out. 

“No, listen. I’m not an average teenager. I realize how bratty that sounds, but that’s not where I’m going with this. I’m literally not completely human Mr. stark, and treating me like I’m that’s not a part of me is more ridiculous than what’s happening now.” 

Tony snapped his mouth shut at that. He could see the gears working in the older man’s brain, and Peter knew that even if Tony didn’t treat him like a child like everyone else, he still forgot about the enhancements as well. 

“You know what, Pete? You’re absolutely right.” This is what Peter loved about his mentor. How willing he was to listen to other people, how he actually took the time out to think about things rather than just forming a half baked opinion and sticking to it stubbornly. 

“I think it’s time we sit them all down and show them you’re made of, huh?”

* * *

“Alright, I’m sure everyone’s wondering why I called you guys here,” Tony began, looking around the conference room to see that everyone was here. 

Everyone who had been getting on Peter’s nerves were here, sitting at the round table with confusion written all over their face. Steve, Natasha, Clint, Bruce, Rhodey, Happy, and May. Tony wasn’t sure how effective today’s demonstration would be, but he hoped that they’d at least get something through their brain. Because he wasn’t sure how long Peter would silently put up with this kind of behavior from them.

“So. All of you are basically here for an intervention,” Tony raised a finger when Pepper tried to say something, “Nuh-uh, Pep, not now. I’m not going to conduct it, someone else is, and all of you will listen to him, or you won’t be allowed to leave the room. And don’t think I’ll hesitate to lock you in, because I won’t. Trust me.” 

And before anyone could say anything to that (though he could see the indignation rising on many faces), Peter walked in, his fingers drumming on his right thigh nervously. Tony could see how keyed up the young boy was, and he felt bad that this had been going on as long as it did. 

He saw the expressions change on everyone's faces, the annoyance now tinged with a bit of exasperation, as if they thought this was just a childish stunt to waste their time. Tony bit his lip before he could say anything; this was Peter’s show. He wouldn’t interrupt unless he was needed. 

“Um. Hi everyone,” Peter said after a pause. He even did a little wave, bless his heart. 

“Son, what’s the meaning of this?” Steve Rogers. Of course, it had to be him. Just couldn’t stay quiet for a minute, that man. 

“Well, I wanted to clear some things with you, and we- that is, Tony and I- figured this was the best way to do it,” Peter shrugged. 

“Okay, so. Let’s do this. How many people here think I’m just your average teenager, who shouldn’t be Spider-Man?” Right into the deep end. Tony’s heart could burst with how proud he was of the young spiderling. And they’d barely even started. 

* * *

All hands in the room, except Happy’s rose, no hesitation at all. And although Peter knew what would happen when he asked the question, he still couldn’t stop the hurt from flashing across his face. Looking at Aunt May, in particular, made his heartache something else. 

“Oh um okay, glad y’all are honest at least,” Peter joked weakly, not blind to the irritation that was now leaking into everyone’s expressions. 

“Look, Peter, what are we here for?” May started, “Everyone’s really busy, sweetheart, and I don't think it’s fair to pull them away from their work just to satisfy your curiosity, you know? You could find some other time for that.” 

“And what’s this about Spider-Man?” Steve broke in, “Why is it that everything seems to come down to that? You really shouldn’t waste so much energy on that, Peter. You don't have anything to prove, you know?” 

That was the last straw. 

“Okay, fine, you know what? I’m done being polite about this,” Peter snapped. “All of you have been getting on my last nerve for the past month, and I can’t take it anymore, so I’m going to lay out the facts for you, and all of you are going to listen, or so help me God, you’d find out exactly why the crime rate in Queens has dropped so low these days.” 

He took just a few seconds to savor the shock on everyone’s faces, hoping FRIDAY took a picture so he can keep this memory forever, before barreling on, knowing they wouldn’t stay quiet for long.

“You guys clearly don’t understand anything about Spider-Man, so I’m here to clear it up for you. Spider-Man isn’t just a random sixteen-year-old who decided to wear his pajamas one day and fight random thugs in his neighborhood. Spider-Man is an enhanced individual with mutated DNA. He’s not completely human. Which means  _ I’m _ not completely human.” 

“So treating me like any other teenager is ridiculous and quite frankly, insulting. I can do things that not a single one of you in this room can even think of, and yes, I’m including you in that claim, Captain. This isn’t me trying to show off, this is the truth.” 

“I have super strength, but all of you knew that. Now let me put it in relative terms, I can lift up to 10 tons, easy. I can and have lifted a whole warehouse on my own. I can probably punch Captain America himself to the other side of Queens.”

“Now, listen here-” Cap started, voice indignant at the idea of this runt of a kid even being able to touch him, let alone do that kind of damage.

“Nope, you’re wrong,” Peter interrupted, not in the mood to listen to his self-righteous crap. “I know for a fact I’m stronger and faster than you. I don’t want you to think that I’m saying this because I want to one-up you. That’s not it at all, but this is the most concrete comparison I can make so what I’m saying goes through your head.”

“Right. Strength and Speed, that’s one thing, that’s offensive. Let’s talk defensive now. I’m flexible as fuck. You guys probably can’t even understand how much I can bend.” 

With that, Peter walked forward until he was sure everyone could see him. Once he was sure there would be no calls of foul play, he bent backward until his head hit the back of his knees. But he didn’t stop there, no. He knew Natasha Romanoff could do the same. He just widened his stance just enough that his head could fit through the gap and come up from the other side, just until he could see everyone again. He could see the horrified expression on most people’s faces, and that’s exactly what he was aiming for. He held himself in that contortion for a few seconds, just to ram it home, before bending in another impossible direction to stand up straight again. 

“So you can see I’m not joking about that. When you combine that kind of body movement with the sixth sense I have, and I’ll come back to that don’t worry, then you get someone who can avoid bullets from a machine gun with barely any effort. And alright, for the sake of being humble, let’s assume I’m hit with a bullet. It’s the nature of this profession, you get hurt. I’m certainly not trying to say I’m invincible or some shit. Anyone who’s known me for a few minutes can tell that I’ve gotten hurt multiple times, and badly at that. Do you know what happens then?”

He crossed his arms and looked expectantly at everyone, daring them to speak. Luckily for him, they were still spooked by his demonstration so no one said anything. 

“I heal, in hours. If any of you, save Cap, got shot, you’d need weeks before you were deemed healed by any half-trained medical professional. I need a few hours, depending on the severity of the injury. If it’s a graze, I can literally forget about it and the wound would be as good as new in a couple of hours. If it goes clean through, then an overnight sleep is enough until I’m back to normal. If it’s stuck inside, then I have to clean it up, and suffer through some soreness on top of that.”

“Before anyone of you thinks I’m lying, none of this is speculation. These are all based on wounds I’ve actually gotten.” 

“Wha-YOU’VE BEEN SHOT?” May shouted, “Peter Benjamin Parker, I cannot tell you how disappointed I am in you right now-” 

“There’s a reason you never found out, Aunt May,” Peter reasoned tiredly. If there’s one person he couldn’t bear to argue with, it was his aunt. This was the woman who sacrificed so much to raise him, who always put him and his happiness before hers. He didn’t think it was physically possible for him to raise his voice at her. 

“It’s because I healed before anyone could even figure out what’s happened. I’ve literally gone to school the day after a bullet went straight through my calf. That’s the extent of my healing.” 

Once again, he could see Aunt May trying to say something but he quickly cut her off. 

“Let’s talk about my sixth sense, or the Spidey-Sense.” Peter turned around and placed his index finger on the back of his neck. 

“This is where I feel it. Any kind of danger around me, and the hair right here raises and I get goosebumps. I’m not quite sure how I can draw an accurate parallel for this, because none of you guys have anything similar to this, but think of it kind of like entering a spooky house, and just getting a feeling about it. Think of it as a gut instinct. Except, it’s much, much more reliable, and accurate. Sure, the first few weeks I couldn’t figure out how to interpret the data I was receiving, but I like to think I’ve gotten pretty good at it now.”

“I can figure out anything from anyone trying to play a prank on me, to someone launching projectiles in my direction.” 

At this, he nodded in Tony’s direction, who came over and handed him a blindfold. 

“Since the whole point of this conversation is to prove some things to you, I felt like another demonstration was in order.” 

He walked over to the wall and pressed a button that was hidden off to the side. The whole thing shifted to reveal a padded room with some kind of device attached to the wall on the other side. 

‘Have fun.” 

And with that, the place which was previously a wall shimmered and a transparent wall covered the whole area so everyone could see and hear Peter but not do anything more than that.

In front of their eyes, the device unfolded to reveal a machine gun. Eyes widened in alarm and they couldn’t do much more than yell in alarm before it was aiming and then shooting at Peter. 

In just a few seconds, alarm turned to shock, as Peter dodged (dodged!) all the bullets effortlessly. He didn’t even look like he was trying, and yet, not a single bullet so much as grazed him. All while he was blindfolded. 

The whole thing took barely a minute, but it felt like a lifetime for those on the other side of the glass, who’d held their breath the whole time. 

As quickly as it began, it ended too and before they knew it, Peter was removing the blindfold from his eyes and walking towards his place at the front of the room, the wall covering the room like nothing was ever there.

He smiled at them, but it wasn’t a happy smile. No, it was a tired smile, but it also had the same energy as a shark who’d just smelt blood. 

“There you go. My Spidey-Sense in action. I hope that the demonstration was sufficient enough to show you why I’m not completely defenseless on the streets.” 

“Now, the last part of this whole shtick. Why I’m Spider-Man. Why I do what I do. Contrary to what all of you might think, I didn’t become Spider-Man when I got bit by a radioactive spider. I became Spider-Man after Uncle Ben died.” 

Hearing that, Aunt May gave a start, and although Peter hated to do this, hated that he caused her any discomfort, he knew this was necessary. There was no other way. These people had to know why he risked his life every day out there. 

“ ‘With great power comes great responsibility’ That’s what Uncle Ben told me one day, and that’s what keeps me going every day, what gives me the strength to wake up. I have powers, none of us can deny it, I have the ability and the opportunity to make a change in this world. And I’ll be damned if I’m not going to take that. If I can stop even one person from going through what Aunt May and I did, then”

“I realized one thing a long time ago. Big names like all of you, and yes I’m including you Mr. Rhodes, you guys don’t care about the little guy, the common man. And sure, that might be because you can’t care about them. You have bigger threats to take care of, it’s literally not your job, there’s the police for that kind of stuff, right? Wrong. They need a superhero to look after them too. And if no one else will step up to fill that gap, then I will.” 

“I’ve gone through too much in my life for you to call me a naive little kid. I’ve lost three parental figures at this point, I’ve almost starved to death on occasions, I’ve had to grow up and mature far too quickly for someone my age. You can’t live a life like mine and not come out a bit broken by the end of it. So I’m asking you all one last time, stop treating me like I’m a kid. I’m not. I think I’ve proved that sufficiently well enough.” 

And with that, Peter Parker walked out of the room with his shoulders taut and his head held high. 

**Author's Note:**

> I have so. many. ideas typed up in notes its unreal. i just need to type it out, which is uh not the easiest thing lol  
> anyway, i've been binging on tony & peter fics for the past month so it's the only thing on my mind these days, hence this. i hate that i've basically abandoned my fanfiction so i'm trying to come back. if marvel's the way to do that, then hey, no complaints. 
> 
> so yeah, hope u enjoyed this one.


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